RIYADH: Saudi Arabia, represented by the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation have announced a new partnership to save children from polio and reduce poverty, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Sunday.
The two sides signed a memorandum of cooperation to protect 370 million children from polio annually and lift millions of people out of poverty in 33-member states of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB).
The signing ceremony was held on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum’s special meeting in Riyadh.
Adviser to the Royal Court and Supervisor General of the KSrelief Abdullah Al Rabeeah, and Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Bill Gates was also present on the occasion.
This collaboration will provide crucial support to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative as well as the Lives and Livelihoods Fund (LLF), the largest development program in the Middle East.
The LLF focuses on poverty alleviation in 33 IsDB member nations through investments in combating preventable diseases, strengthening primary healthcare, supporting small farmers and rural agriculture, and improving basic infrastructure.
